Jenna Dewan Loved Getting to 'Unleash' on Fiancé Steve Kazee When He JoinedThe Rookieas Her Ex

Mar. 15, 2025

(L-R) Jenna Dewan, Steve Kazee on ‘The Rookie’.Photo:Disney/Carlos Lopez-Calleja (2)

Disney/Carlos Lopez-Calleja (2)

Jenna Dewanshines brighter on screen thanks to her fiancé,Steve Kazee.

The actress, 44,who plays firefighter Bailey Nuneon the ABC dramaThe Rookie,recently opened up toVarietyabout what it was like having Kazee come on board as Jason Wyler, her estranged, abusive husband.

Being a “fan of his talent,” Dewan told the outlet she was “immediately excited” after showrunner Alexi Hawley told her that he wanted Kazee, 49, to join the show.

Steve Kazee and Jenna Dewan on ‘The Rookie’.Disney/Carlos Lopez-Calleja

Disney/Carlos Lopez-Calleja

“He’s such a good actor that I felt we would be able to push each other and really go to places that you feel safer to go to when it’s someone you trust and you’re going home with. It just feels as if you’re going to unlock new sides to your relationship,” Dewan said.

Kazee first appeared midway through Season 4 when his character gets out of prison and Bailey was in the middle of establishing a romance with John Nolan (Nathan Fillion). While Jason would soon be locked up again, he escaped prison once more afterBailey and Nolan tied the knot in season six.

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Jenna Dewan on ‘The Rookie’.Raymond Liu/ABC via Getty

Raymond Liu/ABC via Getty

Although Dewan notes that doing something unconventional is “fun” in general, she enjoys having those “really extreme moments together” that are outside oftheir normal lives as parentsto sonCallum Michael Rebel Kazee, 4, and daughterRhiannon Lee Kathryn Kazee, who turns 1 in June.

She and Kazeeannounced their engagement in February 2020. Dewan is also a mom to daughterEverly “Evie” Elizabeth Maiselle Tatum, 11, with ex-husbandChanning Tatum.

Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty

The mom of three toldVarietythat she and Kazee immediately realized they “work well together” after their first time sharing the screen. “We wouldn’t have known that untilThe Rookie,“she added.

As for what the two enjoy most out of collaborating, Dewan said, “I think it was fun for him to play a really bad guy — just truly, outright bad — and it was fun for me to be able to unleash on him.”

“They’d say ‘cut!’ and we’d immediately look at each other and start laughing, like, ‘What are wedoing?’ " she added.

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The Rookieairs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.

source: people.com